Chemistry

Wow--this is a pic of exactly the same chemistry set I had as a kid. I remember that girl with the turtleneck on the front of the package. When I was younger I used to LOVE chemistry sets. I had so many of them, and would stay up half the night doing little chemistry experiments. A lot of them had to do with turning one chemical solution a different color, or growing crystals or whatnot. I don't know why I didn't take chemistry in high school, or why I didn't end up doing CSI stuff. I think half the appeal of chemistry sets was organizing my chemicals and polishing my test tubes and making everything look very neat--but that's another obsession all together. Anyhow, tonight I am actaully applying my grade school chemistry skills to my drum. I finally got the oxalic acid and mixed it up with hot water and applied it very carefully to the stains with a paint brush. And lo and behold, I'm turning one chemical reaction into another, or more precisely, I'm getting those darn stains out. Some are meaner and more stubborn than others, but hey--beats sanding.

I'm supposed to stop the chemical reaction with water and baking soda, but it's getting late, and there are still hints of the stains there, and I'm wondering if it's ok to leave the stuff to do its work while I get some shut eye. I think I'll leave it on tonight and cross my fingers and see what happens. I guess the worst case scenario would be that I'd have to borrow a mechanical sander and get to work. Or maybe the WORST case would be that I wake up to a pile of sawdust in the morning--but let's not get paranoid, right?

Janet said that when I applied the finish (which will be tung oil in my case--more on that later) that the grain will pop out and be amazing. I'm imagining it will be something like Christmas morning, but without the dim sum. I just worry that if there are still hints of stains that they'll pop out too. In the end though I have to be realistic. Hopefully we'll be doing fabulous things with our arms and solos and stuff that will call attention away from the nitty-gritty of the drum, right? Just need to work on that Mokuyobi solo while I'm waiting for things to dry.